The Conquest of Thasos
by Cynical Classicist
Summary: The Doctor and Norine land on the island of Thasos as the Persians are invading it. Can the Doctor avoid changing history? Part of story arc, more will be explained in next two uploads.


On the island of Thasos, near to the sea, there was a wheezing groaning sound just outside a town and the TARDIS appeared. The Doctor stepped out. "There you are Norine! Earth, BC!"

Norine walked out, wearing a long dress and veil. "Do I really have to wear this?"

"You'd get arrested if you wore something else!" replied the Doctor. He was wearing his normal tweed jacket and bow tie, though had added an elaborate hat.

"And what is that hat?"

"Something I picked up in Egypt in this century."

"Are we in Egypt?"

"No!" replied the Doctor. "Right now we're in 492 BC! Somewhere between Persia and Greece, I think this area is called Thasos!"

"And the hat..."

"Hats are cool!" replied the Doctor.

"Been here before?"

"Not really" said the Doctor. "But I've been to this area before. Can get so hard keeping track of things. I need to look in my diary."

"You said we would go somewhere nice. Why is this area so nice?" asked Norine.

"I can't think why for the moment!" replied the Doctor. "I just felt like letting the TARDIS take us somewhere! Or was I controlling it?" He seemed unsure then smiled. "Well, we might as well look around." He looked into the distance and saw some houses. "Time to go into town!" he said happily.

A short way from the time travellers a huge army had just won a great victory. This army had been formed to conquer Greece and was composed of tens of thousands from the many peoples that made up the Persian Empire. Ever since Athens had assisted the Ionian Revolt King Darius had wanted revenge on them, even ordering he should be reminded every day to remember the Athenians.

Leading them was Mardonius, whose father Gobryas had helped Darius claim the throne. Mardonius was son-in-law, nephew and half-brother-in-law of King Darius. Macedonia had agreed to Persian subjugation and Mardonius was confident his fleet would or had subdued Thasos. He eagerly awaited the message.

Mardonius surveyed his troops. "May the Gods grant that Thrace and Greece fall to the power of Persia!"

The thousands of troops behind him cheered. Mardonius smiled.

"Soon the lands of Thrace will be part of the world's greatest Empire" he continued to his army. "Now on, for the glory of Darius! Great rewards will be ours!"

The men cheered and marched to their ships.

As the Doctor and Norine stepped through the town they saw a crowd of people shouting furiously.

"Debate going in, bit of trouble, just what I like!" said the Doctor.

He bounced into the crowd. "Hello! I'm... Bdelycleon and this is my sister Norine!" he said pointing at Norine. "I'm new here so what's the big topic?"

A tall and well-dressed man who looked about 30 turned. "Where are you from?"

"Gallifrey!" replied the Doctor. "Very far away. But the hat's from Egypt. But again, why the meeting?"

"How could you not know?" asked another man. "The forces of Persia have taken this Island of Thasos."

"Oh right!" said the Doctor. "I was sure something important happened on Thasos this time!"

"Right now we are wondering whether to accept them or not. There are still thousands who would fight the Persians."

"And you are?" asked the Doctor.

"Amyntas, son of Hilarion" said the man. "I am a local man. I feel it would be better to accept the power of Persia."

The Doctor looked thoughtful for a moment then began speaking very quickly. "I don't think you should accept the Persians!"

"I heard they let us practise our own way of life" said Amyntas. "And it could be excellent for trade."

There were mutters of interest from among the crowd.

"Yes. But... DON'T ACCEPT THEM!" shouted the Doctor. "You should keep fighting the Persians! Don't let them invade!"

The people recoiled from the anger in the Doctor's voice. But Norine could tell he had influenced them. There were cries of delight and shouts for war.

"Time we were off Norine!" he whispered to her as the crowd muttered among themselves thoughtfully. The Doctor and Norine walked away.

"Interfering again!" said Norine.

"I know the Thracians are supposed to fight the Persians" smiled the Doctor. "Just making sure things stay on track!"

"Really? You're encouraging war?" asked Norine.

"You're right! I am behaving oddly!" replied the Doctor. He remembered a long time ago, when he was an old man. "And I know how terrible war can be."

The crowd was dispersing, but Amyntas and another man whispered together. "These strangers... They could cause us trouble."

"I agree" said Amyntas.

"Get rid of them immediately! But not in sight of the people."

"I'll follow them."

The Doctor and Norine walked through the city. "Not such a bad area!" said the Doctor. "Good we came here!"

Suddenly he looked alert.

"Seen something?" asked Norine.

"No... Heard someone just over..." The Doctor spun like a top and pointed to his left, between two houses. "There!"

Amyntas leapt out at the Doctor carrying a sword. "There you are! I was right!" smiled the Doctor.

"Pray to the Lord of many Hosts!" snarled Amyntas, brandishing his weapon.

"Can I at least get the boat fare?" asked the Doctor with a grin.

The man snarled and ran at the Doctor.

"A no would have sufficed!" replied the Doctor as he nimbly sidestepped, tripping the man up. As the man turned his face was struck by the Doctor's elbow and his nose shattered. The man yelled in pain as the Doctor kicked him over and snatched the sword. He raised it above his head with a blood curdling cry.

"Doctor!" shouted Norine.

The Doctor blinked and dropped the sword behind him. Why was he becoming so violent? Amyntas wriggled away, with terror on his face.

"Sorry! I don't kill unless I'm threatened. Well, you were threatening me but..."

"I'll be back!" cried Amyntas as he pulled himself up. "Make your preparations!" He pulled himself up and ran away.

Norine ran over. "What happened to you Doctor? You're not usually like that!"

"I'LL DECIDE... What am I saying?" asked the Doctor. "Anyway, we should probably return to the TARDIS. I always seem to be ending up in the wrong place!"

Norine ran forward but stumbled over her dress. "These clothes are really inconvenient!" she said angrily.

"Well that's what we have to do around here!" said the Doctor. "I remember one time when I had to wear those clothes to get into the Blue City in the Sirius System!"

Norine pulled her veil off. "Well is this good enough? It's much easier to see now!"

The Doctor spun round and opened his mouth but was interrupted by a shout of "There they are! Kill them!"

The time travellers turned to see Amyntas and two other men. One was shorter and fatter. Another was large and muscular. They were all carrying swords. "You won't escape this time!" sneered the Greek.

"Run!" shouted the Doctor. Norine and he ran along, the men in hot pursuit.

Up ahead was a large building. "Must be a Temple! Maybe we'll be safe in there!" said the Doctor.

The three men surrounded the Doctor and Norine in the Temple.

"So, whose shrine is this?" asked the Doctor.

"This is the shrine of the great God Poseidon!" said one of the men.

"Now you can't go killing in a Temple" pointed out the Doctor. "Ever seen Jason and the Argonauts?"

"The one with the skeletons?" asked Norine.

"Yes! Must take you to meet Harryhausen at some point" replied the Doctor.

"Blood will be spilt to atone for yours" said the man who had been with Amyntas.

"How about no blood is spilt!" said the Doctor.

He looked at the largest man. "Why are you fighting with them?"

"I have been promised my freedom by my gracious master Demetrios" he said, pointing to the short man.

"Just like in Midsummer Nights Dream! Are you in love with Helena? Wait, it was Hermia..."

"Kill them!" shouted Demetrios. The slave gave a leap at the Doctor, brandishing his sword.

"Behind the alter!" shouted the Doctor, dodging the slave and diving behind it. Norine followed him. The man followed them round but Norine kicked upwards and the man doubled over with a cry, dropping his sword. Norine picked it up and pointed it at the man.

"How can a woman fight like that?" asked Amyntas.

"Right training!" said Norine, going into a combat stance. All three men stood away from her, not sure what to do.

The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and a loud whine ran through the Temple. The men flinched back. "Don't mess with me!" said the Doctor, brandishing his sonic screwdriver. "Or I'll blast you to the Underworld!"

"It could be some trick..." began Amyntas.

The Doctor dug round in his coat and pulled out a cannister of a green powder. He hurled it down in front of Amyntas and a foul smell ran through the Temple. The men began to shake, looks of terror appearing on their faces as they inhaled the gas. "A bit of Nightmare Fuel substance!" replied the Doctor. "Now leave!"

The men ran out in terror.

"Well, looks like we made them run!" smiled the Doctor, putting his sonic screwdriver back. "Isn't a weapon but certainly looks like one!"

A footstep was heard. The Doctor spun around to see a man in armour had entered the Temple, leaving his spear outside. "And you are?" asked the Doctor.

"I am Asad, son of Nikandros, Captain in the Persian army!" said the man, bowing low before the Doctor. "I saw the power of the staff." He gulped uneasily. "You must be a God. Do not destroy these people!" he said quickly. "They had no idea who you were! I wasn't commanding them. They will perform a..."

"Don't worry!" smiled the Doctor. "No sacrifices necessary! I ate a great peanut butter orange shake earlier today! And I don't want unnecessary violence."

The man looked odd at the mention of the shake but shook it off. "Are you Hermes?"

"Well I do travel a lot" said the Doctor. "And I have slain giants. I must have the right hat somewhere... I'm rambling! So, would you mind explaining why you are here?"

"I am part of the Persian force. Before I depart with the navy I hope to see more of the land and perhaps convince the remaining opposition it would be better to join us."

"So you're Persian?" asked Norine.

"My ancestors came from Greece but my mother was Persian."

"Your family collaborated with them!" said Norine angrily.

"I am loyal to the Empire of Darius!" said Asad angrily. "But I am loyal to my Gods. I will give an offering to you for safe travel to Greece! I will make sure we do not attack the holy shrines!"

"You're supporting those tyrants!" shouted Norine.

"Tyrants?" said Asad.

"She meant the bad sort!" said the Doctor quickly. He muttered to Norine "Tyrants mean something different." To Asad he continued "She means the sort that oppress you."

"We are allowed to practise our own way of life. And Mardonius just set up a democracy in my city."

"Let's see... Then you would be from... Ionia!" said the Doctor.

"Wasn't there some revolt there?" asked Norine.

"My family did not support the revolt" replied the soldier. "We were delighted at Mardonius' actions. Those democracies were unprecedented."

"Never heard of the Persians as democratic" muttered Norine. "Always thought they were dictators."

"There were dictators in Ionia... Who is this woman?" Asad asked the Doctor curiously. "Is she yours?"

"I don't belong to anybody!" said Norine angrily.

"Wife? No! Sister... Norine!" said the Doctor quickly. "And something else. What about those three who attacked us?"

"Some people who agree with us, but of course they will make reparations..."

"Like I said, no sacrifices needed!" said the Doctor. An idea sprung into his mind. He knew it was risky, but he felt if he did this right he could save some lives.

"Here is my advice to you" said the Doctor, trying to sound like a God. "Don't join the fleet! Or at least, avoid Mount Athos. Could be in for a rough time there!"

"But my Lord Mardonius..."

"DON'T SAIL PAST MOUNT ATHOS!" shouted the Doctor, whipping out his sonic screwdriver and pressing the button menacingly.

The man jumped back. "Of... Of course mighty one." He bowed low again but looked up fearfully. "May I ask why my Lord."

"The fury of Zeus will destroy the fleet if they sail. For it is decreed you will not conquer Greece this year! Now go, mortal!"

The man scurried off. "I will tell the other Captains. We will make a great sacrifice to you for this Lord Hermes!"

"Yes..." said the Doctor, smiling as he watched the man run off. As the men moved out of sight the Doctor gave a sudden shout of "WHAT!" with a look of horror upon his face.

"Why are you so upset? You'll be saving him" Norine pointed out. "You could be saving loads of people."

"But... But... This isn't what is supposed to happen!" said the Doctor. "What have I done! If the Persians hear of this they could save thousands of their men!"

"But don't you like saving lives?" asked Norine.

"Well, yes, but... There are some things I can't do. Saving the Persian Fleet is one of them."

"Why?"

"That would be a massive alteration of history!" said the Doctor desperately.

"You're always interfering."

"Well... yes" replied the Doctor sheepishly. "I know when to stop! I don't meddle consistently, trying to change events. I try to leave things as I found them."

"What could this do?"

"The destruction of the Persian Fleet caused Mardonius to call off his invasion. If his fleet survives the Persians could attack Greece years early."

"But Greece beat them in the history I know!" said Norine. "So what if it's a few years early?"

"They won't be prepared!" pointed out the Doctor.

"But maybe you could help..."

"That might make things worse!" said the Doctor. "I don't know what will happen if Persia attacks two years early. Their navy needs to be destroyed."

"You're willing to let thousands of people die!"

"It's something that needs to happen!" said the Doctor. "And many more could die if I let the Persian Fleet get to Greece!"

The two ran on, Norine ripping her dress to make it easier to run. The Doctor glanced at her. "You look like a Spartan in that! Come on Lampito! We shouldn't be too far from the coast."

A few kilometres away a group of about a hundred men were running towards the coast. "We must slay those Persians!" cried their leader, Linos. He was a tall blond man with a wild beard and carrying a spear. His family were among the most powerful in this area and he feared the power of the Persians, knowing a new regime could mean an end to his power. He knew such a small force could not defeat the Persian navy but rumours had spread that a God had appeared on Thasos and told the people to revolt against the Persians. Other people were saying it was a trickster. But whoever it was Linos hoped to incite the people to war with a sudden and brutal attack on the Persians. And even if he died it would be a heroic death.

As the Doctor and Norine approached the coast they saw this crowd of men in the distance.

"More Persians?" asked Norine.

"No" replied the Doctor. "I doubt they're sending that many troops in an open attack."

"So who are they?"

The Doctor looked over the people. "I think they are local forces, trying to fight the Persians."

"Should we let them?" asked Norine. "That will prevent that Captain telling the navy to stop."

"I can't act like that!" said the Doctor. "Some might survive the storm."

He looked around him and gave a cry of "The ship!" pointing to the left.

"We're looking for Asad!" pointed out Norine.

"But he's heading to his ship so... There he is!" The Doctor pointed again and Norine saw the Persian, close to the ship. He had been delayed as he was talking to the three men who had attacked them. She turned to the Doctor but he was already running towards Asad.

"But surely you want him gone!" shouted Norine, running after him.

"I can hypnotise him into forgetting!" the Doctor yelled after her. He picked up a stone and hurled it above Asad, striking a tree.

The soldier turned, drawing his sword. "Who... My Lord Hermes!"

"Are you sure he is Hermes?" asked Amyntas. "It could be some trick."

"It is best not to risk the anger of such powerful beings" replied Asad.

The Doctor jumped down the hill, seeing the Thracians were close by, and knowing they would be upon Asad in a minute.

"Hello again!" he said.

"You have arrived just before I could reach my ship" replied the Officer.

"Great! Anyway, I am here to say that... well... Fate doesn't want the Persians to stop sailing towards Mount Athos."

"What? But, you told me Hermes and Norine..."

"Well, slight mistake, Zeus decided the Persian fleet needed... well the storm isn't going to happen..." The Doctor could tell his lying wasn't convincing. A voice in his mind kept telling him he shouldn't bother with this. He was the last of the Time Lords. He held authority over the laws of time. He would be destroying the Persian fleet because of the laws of a dead race.

"Look out!" cried the Doctor as the enemy hurled a spear at him.

The man turned, his eyes widening in horror. His head jerked back and he fell to the ground, blood gushing from his side.

"You tricked us!" snarled Amyntas, drawing his sword with his two men. "You are no more immortal then me!" He swiped at the Doctor with his sword but the Doctor jumped nimbly aside.

The Thasos soldiers evidently thought he was on their side. Another warrior hurled the spear at the Doctor with a cry of "Die Persian dogs!"

"I'm not from around here but I'm not Persian" said the Doctor as he caught the spear.

Amyntas and his men realised what was thought. "Yes! Leave Thasos and never return!" shouted Demetrios, waving his sword violently.

"Traitor!" added the slave as the army advanced, small but large enough to kill them all.

"Do not attack him... He will destroy you all..."

The Doctor looked at the weakened warrior. He could just leave him. It would be safer. And in his mind there was a stronger voice then before, telling him to just leave this man. He was an invader. Invaders were always the bad guys.

But another voice talked to him. It told him that this wasn't a bad man. He was loyal to his people. He probably believed that Persia invading Europe would make things better. This was the society he had grown up in. And much as the Doctor didn't like admitting it, sometimes invasions made things better. But ultimately this man probably didn't intend to oppress. Most of the people in Empires didn't.

"Those men are working with the Persians!" yelled Norine.

"Silence lying woman!" said Amyntas quickly.

"Don't you remember? The debate? Weren't any of you there?" asked Norine.

Several men stepped out. One of them cried out "She speaks the truth!"

The three men held their swords in fear as their angry people surrounded them.

"WAIT!" shouted the Doctor. "The large guy... what's your name?"

"Kapys."

"Kapys! He's just a slave! That fat guy is his master."

"I'm not fat!" shouted Demetrios.

"Leave now Kapys!" Linos told him. "That fat man is your master no longer."

The slave ran away while Demetrios staggered back, tripping and falling to the ground. Linos stood over him and with a look of glee ran him through.

Norine looked shocked and turned away. She had seen death with the Doctor but not something like this. Not even an alien worm eating another alien was as horrific as a man stabbing another.

The Thasos soldiers were distracted as Persians ran from their ships, ready to stop the soldiers. Amyntas ran into their ranks, crying "All hail King Darius!" The men of Thasos moved to meet the Persians and the battle began.

The Doctor put his fingers on the man's head. "Now listen. This is the Lord of Time speaking. You will forget what I told you."

"Is this hypnotism?" asked Norine.

"Yes, but it requires concentration!" said the Doctor, angrily. Asad's eyes opened and the Doctor quickly continued.

"You will not go against orders. You will sail round Mount Athos."

"I will sail round Mount Athos..."

"Good. Now sleep" commanded the Doctor. Asad obeyed.

"Are we going to heal him?" asked Norine.

"Yes! Just wait here a moment!" the Doctor told Norine. "I just need to get something to heal him!"

He ran towards the TARDIS, while Norine waited with Asad. Suddenly there was a wheezing groaning sound and around her she saw the TARDIS appearing.

"Right place. Right time?" asked the Doctor.

"You haven't been gone a minute!" said Norine as the Doctor ran over and used a strange bandage on Asad's wounds.

Asad opened his eyes. "Am I being taken to the House of Hades Hermes?" he asked.

"Just return to sleep!" the Doctor told the Persian, who obeyed.

Suddenly the Doctor reeled over, his face distorting. "What is it?" asked Norine.

"I'M FINE!" shouted the Doctor. "I just... need to pilot my TARDIS somewhere... Make sure history progressing..."

The Doctor leapt to the console and began piloting the TARDIS.

In the Persian camp Mardonius slept, as did most of his vast army. A sentry patrolled outside the camp. Suddenly he heard a footstep behind him and before he could say anything his throat was slit. Around him many other sentries faced the same fate. "Kill the Persians" said one of the attackers. "They will learn if they want to invade this land, they will face the Brygoi!"

Mardonius woke suddenly in his tent. He sat up to hear shouts around him and the cries of dying men. The Persian Commander seized his sword and ran out to see fights all over the camp, between his men and Thracians.

One of his nobles ran over. "The Thracians are attacking us!" he cried.

He brandished his sword and rallied his troops against the Thracians. "By Ahura Mazda we will beat them! We outnumber them many times over and will soon beat them."

A few hundred metres the TARDIS materialised. The door opened and the Doctor looked out. He turned to Norine. "Stay with Asad! I need to do this alone!" He slammed the door and strode through the camp. Around him hundreds of men were already dead and there were thousands fighting the Persians.

"Come on! This is the best army in the world!" shouted an angry voice. "Cut them to pieces!"

The Doctor turned the corner to see Mardonius, shouting at his troops and waving his sword. He sounded brave but of course there was a strong bodyguard round him, though they were hard pressed.

One of the Brygoi suddenly sprang forward. He cut down one of Mardonius' bodyguards, ducked under the sword of another and struck at Mardonius, who fell back with a cry of pain. His bodyguard noticed this and ran forward, cutting the Thracian to pieces before he could finish of their commander.

Mardonius clutched his wound and his bodyguard stood round him, fighting of the Thracians. "My Lord! You need a Doctor" cried one of them.

"Can I help?" said the Doctor, sidling in.

"Who are you?" asked Mardonius. "You do not look Egyptian."

"Why would you... The hat! No just something I picked up while I was in Egypt. Anyway I'm a Doctor! Like you asked for! You are Mardonius?" asked the Doctor as he walked towards Mardonius and the guards advanced on him.

"I am the Commander of this army. And let him try to heal me!" said Mardonius, coughing blood. "I feel like I'm about to die anyway."

"You won't die!" said the Doctor. As he knelt down he noticed the sword of the Thracian next to him. A sudden temptation seized him, to stab this invader. His hand reached out. But another voice told him he was more Doctor then warrior. The Doctor withdraw his hand, instead using it to pull out some ointment and bandages from his coat. He set to work and soon Mardonius felt better.

"You have saved my life! I will give you your weight in gold for this" said the Commander.

"No thanks, I have enough gold already" said the Doctor. He gave a slight laugh at the look on Mardonius face. "Just remember not to advance without your navy. Or you'll be in trouble if you meet more people fighting like this.

Mardonius smiled. "My army and navy is the greatest in the world! With them we will soon burn Athens to the ground!"

"Right. Well bye!" said the Doctor, running out.

"See who the man is" replied Mardonius. "He had an interesting quality about him."

"Could he have been a god?"

"I doubt it!" Mardonius laughed at the soldier. "But look for him anyway!"

The Doctor ran back to the TARDIS and quickly dematerialised. The soldiers came to the area a moment later and looked around in amazement. "Where is he?"

"Perhaps the Gods are on our side" smiled the guard. "Well, we'd better get back to camp."

Meanwhile the Officers were talking to Mardonius, who was sitting with wine and bread having been brought to him. "Many men are saying we should retreat" said one. "I have seen hundreds slain" continued another. "Thousands must have been wounded..."

"No! Most of our great army is still fit for fighting!"

"But we have seen how fierce the local tribes are..." began another but Mardonius interrupted furiously.

"We were attacked at night. Increase the sentries. At day this tribe will learn to fear us. I will not leave till Thrace has been subjugated or I am dead! And one day our army will enter Greece!" His Officers bowed low, accepting his word. Many were older and had more experience, but his close relationship with their King meant he was overall leader.

On Thasos the battle was over. It had been the last fight for Thasos and a short one. When no reinforcements came many of the locals had surrendered, though their leaders had been slain. Among these bodies the TARDIS appeared. Inside the Doctor turned on the scanner. He and Norine looked sadly over the bodies. They saw Demetrios but didn't feel triumph at his death. Maybe they had just wanted to act to protect themselves. After all, the Persians had won. And there were many corpses of Thasos and the Persian Empire mingled, equal in death.

"All these people dead" said Norine.

"Those Persians won't enjoy their victory long. And now we have to take Asad out" said the Doctor, stepping towards the Captain. He picked him up and took him out of the TARDIS.

"Wait!" said Norine, stepping out. "Can't we... still save him?"

"I'm not changing history!" replied the Doctor.

"But surely if we just... sort of... made it look the same?" asked Norine.

"Fake his death? Where would we take him?" asked the Doctor.

"Did anybody survive the storm?" asked Norine.

"Pretty sure some people must have" said the Doctor.

"So if we just leave him and you do your hypnotising thing on him..."

"OF COURSE! You are wonderful!" said the Doctor with glee. He picked up the Captain and gave a groan. "Getting old. Must be the armour."

A shout was heard. "There they are!" The time travellers turned to see Amyntas running down the hill with armed Persians. The Doctor leapt inside, Norine following him. The doors slammed as a spear thudded in.

Outside the men surrounded the TARDIS. "They can't get away!" said the Captain. "We'll soon..." The men recoiled as the light on top began flashing and a wheezing groaning sound began. "What is happening?" cried the Captain as the sand was blown around by the wind.

The TARDIS dematerialised and Amyntas fell on his knees. "These were not people. They were Gods! And I attacked them!"

"Well, get to the fleet. We must be round Acanthos and Mount Athos soon" said the Captain.

"I feel the presence of these beings was ominous" said his Lieutenant. He glared at Amyntas who shrunk under his sight.

"Just get to the fleet!" said the Captain. "If the commander of the fleet finds you late you'll be shackled in the hold." He looked at Amyntas. "You should probably go to. I suspect the local people might not be too happy with you. And we'll see how loyal you are to us."

The Captain thought of the great mountain, which he had often heard of from his troops. "Not even a Giant could defeat the fury of Poseidon. I pray it is not directed against us." He gave the order and the men returned to the fleet, including Amyntas.

The Doctor and Norine watched them departing on the scanner, having dematerialised elsewhere. "Time to go! Thanks for telling me to save Asad. Need companions around to remind me!" said the Doctor, running round the console.

"So it is fine to save people?" smiled Norine.

"I think we can save one person" smiled the Doctor. "Just so long as we leave the main things happening."

"Wouldn't it be better just to take him back to wherever he lives?" asked Norine.

"Not sure about that. I'm sure he'll be fine at Athos" replied the Doctor. "That territory should be willing to let the Persian sailors through."

Asad was stirring. The Doctor again put his hands on Asad's head. "You did sail with the Persian fleet, round Acanthos and Mount Athos. But there your ships were wrecked by a terrible storm. But you were swept to shore."

"I was swept to shore..."

"Yes! But you will get back to Persia."

"I will get back to Persia." Asad smiled.

The TARDIS materialised on a beach. The wind was blowing and pieces of wrecked ship were crashing onto the shore. Among those were sailors, many of them drowned.

The TARDIS crew carried the Persian out of the TARDIS and left him on the shore. "Now we really must be away!" said the Doctor. "Come on Norine!"

"Are you quite sure he'll be fine?" asked Norine.

"We've done all we can!" said the Doctor. "GET IN! Sorry... Get in!"

They entered the TARDIS. The door closed. And again the wheezing sounds began, leaving the Persian on the beach.

Asad woke up and looked around him. He wasn't certain what had happened. But he seemed to remember he had been shipwrecked. It seemed the Gods had spared him. He stood up and walked away, looking for shelter. He would make it back to his city.

In the Time Vortex the TARDIS whirled on.

"I can't understand why I'm getting so violent" mused the Doctor out loud. "And why I was warning someone about the storm. What is happening to me?"

Norine changed the subject. "So what happens now?"

"Of course the Persian fleet gets destroyed by the storm around Mount Athos."

"I know I should feel happy the invaders got destroyed but Asad didn't seem that bad" said Norine. "I didn't know the Persians were like that. I always thought of them as tyrants."

"Well, know what history is like!" smiled the Doctor. "Winner writes it. Even known that happening on my planet! I've met supposed tyrants who were actually quite nice chaps. And heroes who were monsters. I know the Persian Empire wasn't all bad."

"So the Persian fleet is destroyed. Mardonius doesn't conquer anywhere?" said Norine.

"Not exactly" said the Doctor. "He stays till he conquers Thrace, but then has to go home. Two years later another Persian force will attack but get beaten by Athens at the Battle of Marathon. Inspires an event I've been in a few times. And I would have won the Martian version if I didn't have to stop that invasion by... I'm rambling. Anyway 10 years later the Greeks beat Persia again, Mardonius dies, that's all you need to know..."

"You really like your history lessons" replied Norine in a bored voice.

"How about we go somewhere fun!" said the Doctor, quickly changing the subject and bouncing towards the console. "I could take you to the Moon!"

"Hopefully not in this time."

"No. One of the best years for visiting the Moon. 2846! Peaceful era, and there's a great fair on the Moon. The happiest place orbiting Earth."

"And perhaps you can work on your anger management!"

"I'm sure it's just a phase!" said the Doctor. "Fairs always make me feel better! Well, most Fairs."

He pulled the levers and the TARDIS shot into the future.


End file.
